She entered the room and made no move to close the door.
“Do you think it’s Cassie’s?” Jessica asked.
“It’s the only one that makes sense. We have no enemies. I have other alphas that are pissed, but they wouldn’t trespass like this. They know the code.” He glanced up at her. “What do you want?”
“I wanted to apologize for the way that I…” She cleared her throat. “The way that I threw myself at you.”
“You don’t need to apologize.”
“I also told Cassie that I am sorry as well. I ignored her when I knew that you had moved her to your room. I was angry, and I was jealous. I didn’t know what she had that none of us had.”
He sighed, staring at Jessica. “Are you wanting to leave the pack?”
“No. I … I thought that I would make a good pack mate. I’m strong, and I’ve been here a long time.”
“I’ve never given you any reason to believe that we could be anything more than friends, Jessica. You’re right, Cassie is new, but she’s different. She’s … mine. When I’m with her that is what I sense, that she’s mine, and I will protect her at all costs, do you understand?”
“Yes. She’s part of us now. Your happiness is clearly seen even in the couple of days that you’ve been together, and the couple of weeks that she’s been with the pack.”
A full moon cycle was like a lifetime to a wolf. His feelings for Cassie were not to be ignored, and he didn’t push aside his need for her either.
“None of the men mentioned any other break-in within the fences,” Jessica said, looking down at the map.
He followed her gaze. “That’s correct.” He pointed to the location on the map. “This was where the damage to the fence was.”
She took the ruler and aligned it with the house. “While you were all working, I stood where they damaged the fence. When you look down across the forest you have a clear view of the house, Abel. I don’t think this position was random. They did it so that they could see everything. What do you think they want?”
“We know what they want, Jessica. Years of abuse and neglect. A woman that is stronger than the alpha. That fear forced them to push her out in the hope that other packs would reject her.”
“Yet she came to the one pack that is known for taking weird wolves, all with little flaws,” Jessica said, her anger clear to hear.
“They’re either going to attack us, or they’re going to try and take Cassie from me, and I won’t let that shit happen. Not now, not ever.”
“I’ll get Carl, and we’ll do the first lookout. This is all our pack, Abel. You’re our alpha, but this has given us life when our own packs abandoned us,” Jessica said. “I will do everything in my power to protect it.”
He shook her hand and watched her go. Staring at the map, he felt that rage just by thinking about David, Cassie’s old alpha.
If that man even tried to hurt his woman, Abel would fucking slaughter him, but first he’d kill every single pack member. It was known that alphas were connected to their pack. He’d feel the loss as he killed every last one of the abusive bastards.
His wolf wanted blood, but Abel wouldn’t be the first one to start this war—he’d be the one to fucking end it.
Chapter Nine
The warmth of the dungeon was a welcome reprieve from the outside weather, which was raging as a storm began to hit. Cassie sat on the edge of the bed with no desire to touch herself even though Abel demanded that she did. Arousal was the last thing she could think about with what the entire pack had been doing all day.
Her old pack couldn’t stand her, and she knew it had to be them. The scent of bleach was their calling card.
Biting her lip, she hadn’t been able to tell Abel that, but he knew who it was. He’d not needed her to tell him the truth.
“I thought I told you to play with your pussy,” Abel said, entering the room.
The tears that she’d been keeping at bay spilled down her cheeks. “I know it was them,” Cassie said. “The bleach … it was one of their … they would throw it at me, spilling the bleach on my skin as if it would clean the dirt from me.”
She covered her face and shook as tears fell from her eyes.
They had kicked her out, and all she wanted to do was find a life away from them.
The door closed, and Abel was there, his arms around her, holding her close. His warmth surrounded her, and she wrapped her arms around him.
“Don’t let me go.”
“I have no intention of ever letting you go. I won’t let anything happen to you, Cassie. You’re mine now.”